***The official Alden thread *** Share enthusiasm, reviews, sizing, advice, and photos.

[kwhitelaw]

Just curious, how did this happen?

I bought them second hand from on here. factory seconds from the beginning, slated for a French store (Bellerose I believe)

some extra creasing on the insides led to the factory second branding..

that being said, when I received them, they looked great. (finish wise). the left shoe just always had a hazy appearance, so I tried renovatuer, then renomat, then said F it and went straight to nail polish. took a TON of product off, but surprisingly, did little to no effect to the toe cap (nail polish remover was equally applied across the entire front of the shoe). Part of me wonders if I kept hitting the the vamp with polish remover if I'd eventually end up like the right shoe (nothing done to it whatsoever since I acquired them). I imagine I'm well past the alden applied finish at this point, so if there's any saving, it would be by them. :fingers crossed:

at this point, if alden says there is nothing they can do ( in regards to reapplying finish, then no biggie) I paid $250 IIRC, and mainly did it as a litmus to see if my foot would work with the modified last.

now knowing that I can do the ML, I have no problem ordering in the future first quality pairs (understanding of course that Moulded Shoe is stricken from ML shell

sorry for the long winded response.. will update when these *hopefully* come back from alden restored.

 

[Shawnc]



I need to get off my tail and get my #8 ML captoes sent in. I stripped the ever loving hell off the top of one pair, will be curious to see what alden can do to the finish

Man, these are great looking boots. I bet Alden would knock these out of the park. I would definitely send these to them. If you've never used their restoration, just be patient. They're not very good at answering emails to messages but they give an estimate and hit it. And they don't charge your card until the work is done. The way I see it, you're not going to wear the boots as is and for $160 you'll get a new-ish pair of shell boots that you will love. With them being color 8, how much can they truly change the color. I say go for it.

 

[BeSpiffington]



ravello plaza boots x frans boone

Spoiler

Gorgeous MrDV. I think these are my favorite of all your boots. Did Frans Boone make this run back in the Pleistocene era?

 

[kwhitelaw]

Gorgeous MrDV. I think these are my favorite of all your boots. Did Frans Boone make this run back in the Pleistocene era?

if those are truly the sz 12 I inquired about, frans sat on them FOREVER before finally offloading them. I mulled for atleast a month, even asking them to send me a more accurate photo, which all I'll admit was much lighter than posted here.

great score, all the way around.

still trumps me to why these shades can be produced in greater frequencies :sigh:

 

[BeSpiffington]

KWL, woulda shoulda coulda. I'm sure the shell fairies are getting ready to make your grail boots as I type this.

 

[danomagazine]

Anyone have experience with the AF43 Cordovan trubalance boot? I've purchased a pair and tried a couple of sizes but can't figure out what to do.

I wear a 10.5 in most shoes/sneakers. I own the Indy boot in 9.5 C and they fit great. I've tried a 9.5 D Indy and it fits fine. I've also tried a friend's 10 D trubalance boot and it's much too roomy.

So I ordered the AF43 in 9.5 D assuming it would fit fine, but it was very tight on the top of forefoot especially, even though there was room in the toes (plenty of space to wiggle them). I tried them on on carpet and after about 10 minutes my foot wasn't numb but felt constricted. I don't have experience with new cordovan so I don't if they are just stiff in that area or the wrong size.

I swapped them for a 9.5 E and just got them, and they are comfortably fitted on the width, but they are very roomy in the toes, and there is a lot of room in the heel (I can fit more than a finger behind my heel).

Is this just how different cordovan feels on the trubalance last? Does anyone own the AF43 and find they fit differently than Indy boots, etc? Should I just get the D width and expect it to mold to my foot? It almost seems like 9.5 is a little long for me as well. Sometimes my foot feels like an anomaly in sizing.

Appreciate any input on this, it's frustrating switching sizes through the mail, but want to make sure I get the right one.

 

[mdubs]

Alden Whiskey LHS

 

[BeSpiffington]

^^^ Mike, those are very nice. Are they your dream penny loafers? Crease those bad boys!

 

[Vicious49]



Anyone have experience with the AF43 Cordovan trubalance boot? I've purchased a pair and tried a couple of sizes but can't figure out what to do.

I wear a 10.5 in most shoes/sneakers. I own the Indy boot in 9.5 C and they fit great. I've tried a 9.5 D Indy and it fits fine. I've also tried a friend's 10 D trubalance boot and it's much too roomy.

So I ordered the AF43 in 9.5 D assuming it would fit fine, but it was very tight on the top of forefoot especially, even though there was room in the toes (plenty of space to wiggle them).  I tried them on on carpet and after about 10 minutes my foot wasn't numb but felt constricted. I don't have experience with new cordovan so I don't if they are just stiff in that area or the wrong size. 

I swapped them for a 9.5 E and just got them, and they are comfortably fitted on the width, but they are very roomy in the toes, and there is a lot of room in the heel (I can fit more than a finger behind my heel).

Is this just how different cordovan feels on the trubalance last? Does anyone own the AF43 and find they fit differently than Indy boots, etc? Should I just get the D width and expect it to mold to my foot? It almost seems like 9.5 is a little long for me as well. Sometimes my foot feels like an anomaly in sizing.

Appreciate any input on this, it's frustrating switching sizes through the mail, but want to make sure I get the right one. 

That's your problem right there. You don't know your shoe size. Your sneaker size is almost never your dress shoe size. You need to go in to a store and get properly fitted.

 

[Beatlegeuse]



That's your problem right there. You don't know your shoe size. Your sneaker size is almost never your dress shoe size. You need to go in to a store and get properly fitted.

Did you read the rest of his post? He's not basing his choice on his sneaker size - he specifically mentioned his size in the Indy boot, which he says fits great. Generally
speaking, most people wear the same size in the Trubalance and Barrie lasts.

The thing that doesn't make any sense is how 9.5D is tight, but just one width up in 9.5E is much too roomy. There's no size in between those two, so if neither of them fit then the boot probably won't work for OP's foot. Maybe try a 9E? Based on the description of how the 9.5E felt (good in width but too long), a 9E may work. If a cordovan boot feels tight at first, it's not going to stretch all that much with wear.

 

[nickfas121]

I've got a challenge. If you were only able to have 4 pairs of shoes from Alden what would you buy?

-#8 Captoe Boot on Grant
-Ravello Long Wing Blucher on ??? last
-Snuff Suede Plain Toe Boot on Grant
-Black Calfskin Captoe Balmoral on ??? last (or maybe cordovan?)

Thoughts? I wanna see what people come up with!

 

[ReppTiePrepster]

Gorgeous MrDV. I think these are my favorite of all your boots. Did Frans Boone make this run back in the Pleistocene era?

+1, there are many, but this is the ONE.

 

[tylernim]

Ok so like I mentioned a few pages back I finally found 1 shop that had my size in Shell Indys. They are gorgeous. I have all but decided to keep them as my first pair of Cordovans. I'm in a 10.5, and they feel pretty good. Stiff obviously being new and a heavy boot.

In this picture you can see a break in the shine on my right foot where the high part of my big toe is pushing the leather up (I have a tall foot). It's not painful in any way; just snug. Is this going to be a problem? I hear cord doesn't stretch and I understand why. I figured maybe the footbed would break it and create a little more space? The rest of my toes have plenty of room. Pinky toe isn't pressing against the side wall or anything.

Thanks!

Please help! Even if I'm just being overly cautious.

 

[circleslife]

I've got a challenge. If you were only able to have 4 pairs of shoes from Alden what would you buy?

-#8 Captoe Boot on Grant
-Ravello Long Wing Blucher on ??? last
-Snuff Suede Plain Toe Boot on Grant
-Black Calfskin Captoe Balmoral on ??? last (or maybe cordovan?)

Thoughts? I wanna see what people come up with!

Ravello LWB
Cigar Chukka
Cigar PTB
Cigar CPT

I think Cigar is the most versatile of colors for my casual taste. But then all the Ravellos by Mr DV etc just drive me jealous.

 

[Kwaker]



Please help!  Even if I'm just being overly cautious.

you'll have a hot-spot there until you break in the shoe ... recommend wearing bandages in that area until the foot bed compresses ... good luck